You're going over to the competitor's store instead? I'm deeply wounded now!

[Despina83]

A woman was buying a couple items and told me that she needed a price match on the items, since they were currently selling cheaper at the competitor's store next door. The next woman in line said, "Do they do that? I didn't know they price matched." "Yep, I just did it yesterday."

Uh oh. I know this isn't going to be be good, because I know for a fact that we don't price match, after being told a million times. Just to make her happy, I get the supervisor on the phone and she confirms that we don't price match. I get off the phone and the woman is defiantly shaking her head. I broke the news. She looks at me like I'm an idiot. "I just did it yesterday at another one of your stores! "Well, I can just go spend my money at Meijers, that's fine with me." Then she looks at me expectantly. She sees my hands are tied and decides to give it up, gathering up her bags and leaving with a "If they want to miss out on a sale, then it's not my problem" directed at the next woman in line. What am I supposed to say? "Nooooooo!!!! PLEASE, for the love of God, don't go to Meijers!!!! Okay, I'll break the rules just for you this time."

[Boochan]

I don't get it upfront very often..

My store does price matches, but generally only for catalogues and other promotions, and not because one store follows a different pricing schedule (normally they will go on about a couple of dollars). Thankfully many do admit to trying it as soon as we offer to call the store in question and ask them the price over the phone, some are insistent enough to waste our time, and find out generally that the competitor is selling them at a HIGHER price.

Its one of them things where I've had to answer them back when they've been a bit peeved over a couple of dollars (sometimes 50 cents) and say "I'll go to [store] instead now"... My answer is pretty much well go ahead.. fine with us. Common occurrence is the same customer will come back yet again later after having waited in line for over 5 minutes at the other store (which is 6 times larger then ours, but has 2 registers like our store) to pay for their goods.

[Bright_Star]

I used to get that at Wal-Mart every so often. So if someone wants to go to another store then knock yourself out. Retail workers don't give a shit where somebody shops. & if some moron states that they're going to the competitor's store cause they're not getting what they want then they better not act all hurt & wounded when the worker that they're venting on acts if they don't care-cause they don't.

[Rivulatus]

We do price-matches but only after verifying the price, which normally means the customer has to bring in a catalogue, or if it is just a verbal price we call the store in question. Amazing how many people, when you say you will call to verify, will get all defensive, tell you not to bother, they will go to xxx store etc, then disappear. 10 minutes later you'll see them again, this time with a different salesrep, and buy the goods without question.

LOL, sure, we price match, but if you lie, you will get embarrassed.

[Rubystars]

I hated it when customers would get offended when I wanted to verify a price that they told me. One woman at another cashier's register started screaming at the top of her lungs that she was "NOT A LIAR!" She demanded that he "APOLOGIZE RIGHT NOW!" for looking up the ad in question.

[Lace Neil Singer]

We get that all the time; a customer saying, "Well, I guess I'll just go to *supermarket's competitor* seeing as you're out of this food product/won't bend the rules for me/won't kneel down and kiss my feet." I just shrug and say, "Fine." I still get paid either way, why should I care?

[Fenrus]

Reminds me of my retail days... We didn't have a sweater in this girls size, no other store around us had it, but it was a brand that other companies would carry, so I told this girl the other companies in the mall that might have it. She looks at me and goes "You don't want my sale!" I look at her, say "We don't have what you're looking for, and since I don't make commission, I'm not going to pressure you into buying something you don't want."

By the way, don't tell a customer that... she freaked out, yelled "You're in retail, OF COURSE you make commission." Then proceeded to yell to my manager about how I -lied- to her about it. Not about not having the sweater, not about how I helped her out by checking the stock of 4 other *my company* stores in the valley, or how I let her know what other stores in the mall carried that brand.. nothing helpful I did. Had to tell the manager about how I lied about not making commission... He told her we didn't make commission either, she flipped and left. Never came back...

[ReverendBSB]

Had some idiot call in asking if we price matched the other day. He told me he found one of our grills 40 dollars cheaper at Home Depot. I told him no, that we sell our grills at the minimum price Weber will allow us to. He got all huffy, so I put the owner on the phone. Guy repeated what he told me about Home Depot, so the owner told him to go buy it there and hung up on him. I have the greatest bosses.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

My store matches any advertised price. Always has, always will. This is a big thing with my company.

There are, of course, certain requirements that have to be met but aren't always met. So when a customer comes in expecting us to match a price, and we can't do it (because for example the advertised price is a percentage off regular price, not a sale price), we do occasionally get the "Well I'll just have to go to (name of competitor)

My response: Fine then. We'll make plan even without your $10 purchase.

[smileyeagle1021]

I get the price match question at hotels all the time... my favorite is "why is your escondido property at $109 when all the other hotels in the area are only around $79" umm, because the other hotels are motel 6s and super 8s... no offense to those chains, but they don't have nearly as many amenities as our hotel and aren't in as desirable location... that is why they charge less, feel free to use them if you like.

or my other personal favorite... I staid at one of your hotels in (insert name of town in the middle of nowhere) and paid only $89... can I get that rate at your hotel only a mile from times square?"
umm, no, you want to pay only $89 for a room you'd best go back to whatever backwood town you went to last time because there is no way in hell we are doing a rate like that in Manhattan.

[StevieJD]

Years ago, circa 2001-2002 I had an SC in store with two cell phones in hand. One cell is obviously somebody that is using their land line to call my closest competitor's store 175 miles away. The other cell is connected to somebody shopping online using dialup (he/she sure was slow finding prices).


The SC has a list, maybe 35-40 items. The whole process takes maybe 60 minutes. The whole time she is having a very loud 3 way conversation, running around my store, checking prices and marking up her list with her two cell friends and the two people instore running beside her. Often her instore friends are pushing their way between my staff and other customers demanding that SHE be waited upon because SHE is on a long distance CELL telephone call.

Other customers are laughing at her antics. The ones that aren't so PO that they are ready to strangle her.


Finally the SC brings up the list to one of the service counters and announces to the world that she if ready for some assistance.


I stepup and relieve the young clerk working that desk.

(hey, if somebody is going to be a jerk, I always want to be the one).


The SC wants just select items off her list.

By now everybody knows the drill.

Item #1 is cheaper online (except I know the idiot hasn't updated his prices since the webpage went online in 1999 two years ago).

Item #2 is to be bought from me because my closest competitor does not carry that product (Aw shucks) and she can't find the item online any cheaper.

Item #3 is to be bought from my closest competitor because he is $1.25 cheaper on a $15 item and we won't price match him.

Item #4 is to be bought from me because she likes my brand better than his brand, but only if I lower the price by $0.75 on the $140 item.

The whole list really suxs. A couple price leaders. A few heavy sucky items that we sell because we have too. Split products (like buying a keyboard but not the mouse). All in all a very sucky sale if I let it pass.

So I took my time reviewing the list..... it took me a good 5-6 minutes which just really frosted her cookies that I would not work faster... I estimate that 20 of the items were to be bought from me and her grand savings if she purchased as she desired would be under $25 on an estimated $1500 purchase split between the 3 suppliers. Of course if she bought everything from my closest competitor, including the brands she didn't really like, I figure it would cost her about $90 or so PLUS travel time.

And she would be missing one critical item.

Hehehehe.

I shook my head knowingly and told her in my most authoritative voice.... "I think it would be best if you took this list to XYZ and let him fill it."

OMG, instant panic stricken hostility. HOW dare I speak to her in such a manner. She is a customer and she has RIGHTS and she DEMANDS that I fill her order.

"No. My choice. You wasted my time. You were demanding to the employees and demeaning to the other customers that got in your way. Bottom line you ran around the store and behaved like a jerk and at the end of the day all I have to show for your existance is a higher electrical bill for all of the AC that you sucked down"

"Like I previously said, why don't you take this list to XYZ and let him fill it. It will cost you a few bucks more but you will fill good about yourself and the money you wasted".

And then the tears started.

I was going to ruin her business. How unfair. She can't get everything from XYZ. Nothing I hadn't heard before.

My best response..... "those are the decisions that you made. Now go live with them".


Ah yes, the benefits of price shopping and price matching.

[d962831]

*shakes in fury*

I hate customers that do that! Yes, of course I'll bend the laws of physics and gravity and common sense and be fired for it, just for you!

*eye twitches*

[CrazedClerkthe2nd]

I constantly got into battles at my games store because we didn't price much. Finally corporate decided it would be a good idea to allow price matches with MANAGER approval only.

Which worked out great...except for those times when no manager was working!

What a pain in the butt it was to have to call my manager (or assistant) and pull them away from whatever they were doing to approve a price match. I don't work there anymore, but I wouldn't be surprised if they had a price match policy now.

And don't get me started on all the wireless customers who try to get a deal by threatening to go to my competition...

[Bagga]

What really used to annoy me was the Sc's who would come in and say "We came in and priced up this item here, then we went to Argos and they sell it cheaper. So we came back here and want you to price match Argos's price."

WTF? You were actually IN that other shop that sells it cheaper, and deliberately came back here to make us do the damned paperwork to get a price below what we can profit on this item for because we don't have Argos's buying power - and you smile at us in triumph? You rotten git!

[draftermatt]

At the parts counter we'd try and give people breaks on prices, esp. if we knew them well, etc. But if they shouted "YOU CAN DO BETTER THAN THAT" they didn't get much, or anything.

The best one's were "I can get that at NAPA for $35"

Me: "Sir, it costs us $65 for that part, I cannot sell it to you at a $30 loss"